6/8 Lovey (AT) PMPS 210 +5.5 116 Vacation Question?

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lovey11

Member Since 2013
Hi everyone, hope you are having a good weekend. I wanted to get some input or "talk" out my situation with you. We have a family reunion/vacation that is coming up on June 28.
Each year we visit my husband's sister in Vermont. She has cabins that she saves for a week in June for family to be together. Aunts and cousins that we don't see due to distance. (Tennessee) My kids get to see these cousins about once a year. My husbands wants to stay for a week to visit with his sisters. I have been trying to reduce the trip to 5 days, but my husband really doesn't understand the BG"S and how I don't want to lose progress or have Lovey go too low etc. My husband and kids are super excited. I like going but with Lovey now I don't want to be gone for that long. I have not left Lovey for the year that she has been diabetic.

I may flight up separately and stay for 4-5 days instead of 7 days. The air fare is very high since it is around the 4th of July, but I can do it.

I do not think boarding is a good option for Lovey. She has never been away from her house before. She is a timid cat, and I think the stress it would cause would outweigh the benefits of testing. My dad and mom can come and give her insulin and check on her during the day. My dad gave her insulin shots before when I was giving fur shots in the beginning. He has never used the syringe with half unit markings though, but I could practice with him before hand. I am giving a new dose now that may be too low without testing? You can't prefill Lantus syringes right? They live close, but they don't test. Do you think 7 days on a slightly reduced dose would be OK? If I only was gone for 4-5 days would that make a big difference? Lovey is at her lowest dose of about a slightly fat 1.25. We have been on it for almost a week, but I gave a fur shot Friday night.

I was thinking of trying an even 1.25 or slightly less for 3 days and see what numbers I get when I get closer to the vacation? Any input on a dose would be helpful? Lovey is the type of cat where a shave can make a big difference. One time 2 units brought 200-300s and a fat 2 brought green numbers?

Thanks for letting me talk out loud. Any input would be appreciated. Sorry for the length of this post.
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

Hi Catherine,
I don't have any experience of making this kind of arrangement since Lucy's dx, but many members do, so I'm sure you will get a lot of good suggestions/ideas.
But is there any way your dad/mom can also test?
If they can give insulin shots, testing is not that far beyond unless Lovey is a kind of cat who doesn't let anyone else but you do it.
Can you show them how? and if they can manage, you'll have a much better time on vacation, I'm sure.
Maybe at preshots and at her usual nadir?
I hope you can figure out a way for you to enjoy the full vacation with your family and keep Lovey safe at the same time.
I'm sure lots of people can offer ideas/suggestion about dosing!
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

There are a few people here who have gone away and left their cat with petsitters doing shots only. It's great that your mom and/or dad can give the shots. I don't know if you are using calipers, but leaving a sample syringe with colored liquid to the right dose is another way to do it. I'd post a few days before you leave to see if people have a recommendation for dose to give while you are gone on vacation. A lot can happen (including deductions) between now and the 28th. Most people give a slightly reduced dose while they are gone. And no, you aren't supposed to use prefilled Lantus syringes.

I don't think it will make that much difference if you are gone 5 days or 7 days. Lovey will get back on track once you are back home and testing.

Will Lovey eat OK while you are gone? I know some cats who don't eat if their people aren't home or will only eat at night.

BTW - she's looking great today! :-D
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

Thanks so much Mariko and Wendy for your ideas. They are definitely helpful. My parents watched Lovey for me before she had diabetes and she did eat for them. If she doesn't eat at least a 1/2 can of food, they will wait to give the shot until she does.

I was thinking of leaving a moc shot as a guide. Mariko, maybe I can try the testing with them, but I didn't want to make it too complicated for them...HMmmm.
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

Hi Catherine,

You are lucky to have a sweet cat as Lovey who let your Mom and Dad give the shots. Juno is the sweetest cat for me, but then he becomes a sort of Mr. Hyde if anyone else besides me would need to give him the shots or poke his ears. My boyfriend did that for 2 days and he bite and scratched both his arms every time he had to poke his ears :twisted:. Poor him... :lol: So since Juno has become a diabetic kitty (around four months ago), he has been always travelling with me. No pet-sitter that has been coming to my place would be able do that work.

Have a nice evening!
Cristina
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

I hope you can work things out with Lovey's shot so you won't have to worry and Lovey stays safe. I've seen people on the board post they have the petsitter give a reduced shot while they are gone so the kitty won't go too low. I think that is the safer option if no one is around to test. You may lose a little momentum, but can make it up when you get home.
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

Hi Catherine,
I don't think that several days more will make much of a difference. Especially since Lovey will be cared for by your parents and she knows them well. Ask them to shoot a reduced dose and, as Wendy suggests, wait until closer to the date to determine what that dose will be. Just keep in mind that a little too high is safer than way too low. Lovey will get back on track when you get home.

Enjoy your vacation,

Ella & Rusty
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

I'm in the camp that thinks it would be best to have them shoot a reduced dose, and test at pre-shot and around her typical nadir time. Testing is pretty easy if the cat is cooperative. You can leave them a guide showing what to do if the number they get is way high or low (or maybe they can call or e-mail you?) I print out my spreadsheet, with the days I'll be gone blank and have the techs where I board fill in the BGs so I can log it in when I get home. Or, you can just ask them to jot it down. We also keep a little notebook, which we fill in as we test, with just Date, AMPS or AM+3, etc., time and BG. It would be easy for them to do that.

I know it's stressful to leave her, but it really is good for your mental health to take a break and do something enjoyable. I hope you can get it worked out so you can go with as little stress as possible.
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

i agree that reducing the dose is a safe option for her. if you could get your folks to test, i'd sure try to though.

is there any possibility of taking her with you? we dragged punkin everywhere, including a 1300 mile car trip each way from Oregon to Colorado to get his acro tumor treated. we took him with us several times to a beach house that we rent. we took him to family get-togethers and shut him in a bedroom at the in-laws for the day. brought his leash along so we could walk outside if he wanted to, but mostly he wanted to stay inside.

i don't know if that would be more stressful or less stressful for you. we got really comfortable taking him along, and although he'd howl up a storm going to the vet's, as soon as we had driven long enough that he knew we weren't going to the vet's, he'd quiet down and be fine in the car. he pretty much stayed under one of the car seats and we were just always careful to have him held or back in his carrier before anyone opened a door. Rescue Remedy is great to help them calm down before a drive.
 
Re: 6/8 Lovey (AT) AMPS 197 +5.5 153 Vacation Question?

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and good wishes. I appreciate the help and support that I have received here. It was helpful and make me feel good to read your ideas. A reduced dose will be used. I will show my parents the syringe and markings first. Then, maybe the ear testing and see what happens.

I thought about taking her with me, but we are not in the cabins much. We are usually on the lake or out and about. The cabins don't have outside door locks and I am afraid that someone would open the door if Lovey was inside. The property is on a lake and has a lot of woods. Also, there are many dogs who stay around the properties. My sister-in-law has 2 dogs and others bring their dogs.
 
yikes - that doesn't sound safe at all. i wouldn't take her there either. i'm a fan of locking doors! :lol:

i'm glad you've got your folks there to help out. why don't you post a day or two before you go and we can look at what dose might work without testing.
 
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